1. Field of Invention
This invention relates generally to motorcycles, and in particular to a rumble seat and directional front signal lights integrated with the structure of the motorcycle.
2. Status of Prior Art
Gottlieb Daimler, the German inventor, is credited with having in 1885 invented a motorized bicycle which became known as a motorcycle. Early versions of this vehicle were not dependable and the motorcycle did not become popular until well after 1900.
The modern motorcycle is provided with an air-cooled internal combustion engine supported on a metal frame between front and rear wheels, each guarded by a fender. The motor is a two or four cycle gasoline engine with one to four or more cylinders. Motorcycles are widely used for pleasure riding as well as for racing and for the commercial transportation of light loads. They are also used as police vehicles for traffic control and other purposes for which a four-wheeled vehicle is unsuitable.
Included in the structure of a conventional motorcycle is a saddle supported on the frame over the engine, the saddle serving to seat the driver whose hands grasp the arms of the handlebar. The feet of the driver normally rest on footboards secured to the lower end of the frame. Some motorcycles are provided with a rear saddle called a pillion mounted over the rear fender to carry a passenger directly behind the driver.
To afford a more secure support for the seated passenger, the rear saddle in the Honda A.C.E. Tourer illustrated in the June 1997 issue of Motorcycle Cruiser magazine is provided with a fixed backrest. This backrest acts to maintain the passenger in the rear saddle even when forces are generated seeking to propel the passenger rearwardly out of the saddle, as when the motorcycle is quickly accelerated.
Also illustrated in this magazine is a Honda Valkyrie motorcycle in which the driver's saddle and the passenger's saddle are both equipped with a backrest. In the case of the backrest for the driver's saddle, it is angularly adjustable and contoured to conform to the driver's back.
The typical owner of a motorcycle takes pride in its appearance, particularly when the design is streamlined and the fenders are aerodynamically contoured to reduce wind resistance. The smart appearance of a streamlined motorcycle is impaired when the saddle of the vehicle is provided with an upwardly protruding backrest. This has a strictly utilitarian look that is incompatible with the design motif of the vehicle.
A motorcycle is more than just a motorized bicycle for transporting its driver, for the appearance of the motorcycle proclaims the driver's status, just as the appearance of a Rolls Royce auto distinguishes its owner from that of a Ford. In a motorcycle, a smart and elegant appearance is as important to its owner as a first class engine. However, the appearance of a motorcycle must be compatible with its function, and an enhancement in appearance that is at the expense of the proper functioning of the motorcycle is not desirable.
Thus a smartly designed directional signal light unit which is attachable to the handlebar or other part of a motorcycle does not contribute positively to the motorcycle if the unit interferes with the ability of the driver to steer the motorcycle.
A motorcycle in accordance with the invention has integrated into its structure a rumble seat. A conventional rumble seat is an uncovered passenger seat that opens out from the rear of a closed two door automobile in which the driver's seat is within the closed cabin. It has however not heretofore been known to incorporate a rumble seat in the structure of a motorcycle and to do so without impairing the attractive streamlined appearance of this two-wheeled vehicle.
As in an automobile, for reasons of safety it is necessary in a motorcycle not only to provide left and right rear directional signal lights, but to also provide front directional signal lights. By means of such signal lights, drivers in vehicles approaching the rear of the motorcycle as well as those in vehicles approaching the front of the motorcycle are given signals which indicate the direction in which the motorcycle is about to veer.
In a motorcycle, the directional front signal lights are activated by the handlebar whereby when the front wheel is turned by the handlebar to the right, the right signal light is then switched on, and when the front wheel is turned toward the left, then the left signal light is turned on. In many motorcycles these directional signal lights are in the form of accessories which are attached to the handlebar and are provided with cables to connect the signal light to the motorcycle battery.
In the case of the Jardine motorcycle illustrated in the same edition of the Motorcycle Cruiser magazine, the front directional signal lights are formed by compact units joined to the ends of the right and left hollow arms of the handlebar, the cables for these units going through these hollow arms. In the Jardine arrangement, the driver whose gloved hands grasp the arms of the handlebar must be careful not to obscure the signal light units at the extremities of these arms.